No comments about The Trials of Mrs. Lincoln.

2 comments about Jefferson Davis Gets His Citizenship Back.

1. Best known as the author of All the King's Men, Robert Penn Warren wrote this short (114 pages) book after Confederate President Jefferson Davis had his U.S. citizenship restored in 1979 during the Carter Administration, some nine decades after Davis's death. When this took place, Warren returned home to Todd County, Kentucky for a ceremony honoring Davis's posthumous reinstatement. As it turns out, Jefferson Davis, like Warren, was also a native of Todd County, and this book is Warren's memoir, a reflection on the ironic, sometimes sad life of the only president the Confederacy ever had. This rumination was so engaging I couldn't put it down. I read it in one sitting, captivated by the quality of story-telling and the poignant southern nostalgia it evoked.



2. This is a concise - 114 pages - but no less impressive and comprehensive look at Davis's life than some of the longer biographies out there. Warren, like Allen Tate before him, sees Davis as a great man but deeply flawed. He could quite possibly have won the War Between the States had he not been so rigidly dedicated to the principle of state's rights. He was too much the gentleman to do what was necessary. Lincoln, on the other hand, was a pragmatist, and had no qualms about suspending the constitution to achieve his means; he thought he was saving the Constitution by defying it!

   A sad tale of greatness thwarted by principle. Warren composed this essay in honor of his fellow Kentuckian, whose U.S. citizenship had been restored that year - 1979 - by an act of Congress. Warren writes with verve, wit, humor, and insight.

No comments about The Life of John Marshall, Vol. 1: Frontiersman, Soldier, Lawmaker.

No comments about Confederate Pathway to the Pacific: Major Sherod Hunter and Arizona Territory, C.S.A.

No comments about The Peerless Leader William Jennings Bryan.

No comments about George W. Alexander and Castle Thunder: A Confederate Prison and Its Commandant.

3 comments about Born in Brooklyn. . . . Raised in the CAV!.

1. Most enjoyable book I have read in years. Once I began I could not put it aside. John Flanagan's description of his prewar and wartime experiences is captured so realistically in this extraordinary book. John is representative of the thousands of young Americans faced with the difficulties of leaving home, family, friends and a sweetheart to answer thay uncertain trumpet of war in a far off place called Viet Nam. John's story about his experience in the 9th Cavalry is completely factual. I served with John as his commander in those difficult years of 1967 and 1968. He and the other young pilots of B Troop represent the next "greatest generation" this nation has produced. John's book is a must read for all who have an interest in the Viet Nam conflict, human courage and sacrifice. John has humanized this book by injecting what I have come to understand as "gallows humor". I have made this book mandatory reading by my family, particularly, my grand children. They too have acknowledged their understanding of the sacrifices that must be made by them and future generations to insure the freedoms fought for by young soldiers like John Flanagan. Cavalry Always!



2. Well, it certainly is a long journey from the dreary streets of Brooklyn to the miserable and dangerous fields and skies of Viet Nam at war. Major Flanagan has travelled this route and shares his adventure with the reader. He is a real American hero... as are all his brethren flying warrant officers. Yet he tells his story without bravado or arrogance. He is simply telling the story of his experience in Viet Nam as a young 19 year old plucked from the streets of Brooklyn and injected into the chaos of war . He writes of his training as well as his wartime experiences. Often his enemy was the weather as much as the NVA on the ground. Major Flanagan writes in a simple, readable style without pretension; his memories are direct, straightforward and sprinkled with a dash of Irish wit and humor. If one wants to know the life of an Army helo pilot on the front lines of the Viet Nam war, this is a book to read. Beyond the daily life of the helo pilot, we also learn the tactics of inserting ground troops as well as the bravery of these same troops. There are no politics in this memoir. This is a good story, easily read and a tribute to all the brave soldiers of the Viet Nam period.



3. A Great read for anyone interested in a soldier's experience.
   This is an easy to read book, with both humor and seriousness. It gives a peek into what it's like to live in the period surrounding the Viet Nam war. It tells of his life before the army, during flight school, and during the war. This is NOT a dry history book, it's highly entertaining.

No comments about The Campaigns of Walker's Texas Division.

1 comments about Interpreters With Lewis and Clark: The Story of Sacagawea and Toussaint Charbonneau.

1. Interpreters With Lewis And Clark: The Story Of Sacagawea And Toussaint Charbonneau by journalist and historian W. Dale Nelson is an informed and informative documented study of the lives of two prominent figures in Western history, Sacagawea and her husband, and their role in the near-legendary Lewis and Clark expedition of 1803. An insightful, honestly presented, superbly written study that offers the truth behind the myths, Interpreters With Lewis And Clark is a welcome and enthusiastically recommended addition to academic and community library American Biography collections.

1 comments about Rickover: Father of the Nuclear Navy (Potomac's Military Profiles).

1. If you don't want to spend a lot of money and time to delve into Rickover's massive biographies, this small but excellent volume is the best you can find in order to have a complete picture of that important and much maligned personality of the 20th century. The authors cover every important detail of Rickover's life from his early years in Poland to the Annapolis Naval Academy, to World War II service and finally to the atomic branch of the legendary BuShips. Rickover's role in the development of the nuclear powered US Navy is fully precented, as well as his part in the civilian atomic industry and his machinations with the Congress. One of the most interesting chapters in my opinion was the one labelled "The Man" where Rickover's routine, habits and eccentricities make a really enoying read. The book contains some black and white photographs and also a reference to the more important dates of Rickover's life in chronological order.